The Oak Tree of Derry trophy, designed by Maurice Harron, which will be presented to the winner of the International Competition. Photo: Lorcan Doherty Photography
Seventy choirs from around the world will be among the competitors taking part in this year’s City of Derry International Choral Festival.
Following the huge success of last year’s inaugural City of Derry International Choral Festival, the five-day event is back again this October with an even bigger and better line-up of choirs from around the globe.
Organisers will be welcoming more than 70 choirs taking part in competitions, concerts, performances and workshops on the weekend before Halloween.
The highlight of the weekend will be the International Competition, to be held on Saturday, 25 October in the recently refurbished St. Columb’s Hall.
This year ten choirs, representing eight countries, will compete for the prestigious “Oak Tree of Derry” trophy, designed by Maurice Harron, as well as a cash prize of £2,000.
The competitors are:
• Academic Choir of Carinthia Mohorjan, Slovenia
• Chamber Choir of the University of Tartu, Estonia
• Choir of the Maritime University of Szczecin, Poland
• Enchiriadis, Ireland
• Froncysyllte Male Voice Choir, Wales
• Kammerchor Alumni Heidelberg, Germany
• Ondrasek Czech Youth Choir, Czech Republic
• The Park Singers, Ireland
• Portadown Male Voice Choir, Northern Ireland
• University of Primorska Academic Choir, Slovenia
Adjudicating the International Competition (as well as school and national competitions) will a panel of distinguished choral directors with a wealth of experience as international jurors.
Included on the panel will be Ragnar Rasmussen, Professor of Conducting at the University of Tromsø, Norway who will be returning as the chair of the panel having thoroughly enjoyed the experience of the city of Derry and its choristers in last year’s inaugural festival.
Ragnar said of last year’s festival, “What a wonderful festival. The atmosphere was so good, so warm and it was such a nice experience to be there. It is incredible that this was the inaugural festival, as it seemed that it had already developed an identity and a personality. It represents its city in a wonderful way.”
Also on the adjudication panel will be Aarne Saluveer, Estonia (Artistic Director of the Estonian Television’s Girls’ Choir), Mairead Hurley, Ireland (Head of Vocal, Opera and Drama Studies, Dublin Institute of Technology), Christopher Bell, Scotland (Artistic Director of the National Youth Choir of Scotland) and Greg Beardsell, England (Artistic Director Ulster Youth Choir and Irish Youth Choir).
Tickets are now on sale for all events at the Choral Festival and are available from the Millennium Forum box office.
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